y Mr Sam on May 31, 2012
“Good morning and welcome. I am honored and pleased to have the privilege of speaking to all of you today. Being up here in front of the whole school body makes those nights of endless homework and sleep deprivation seem worth it.
For most of the students here, I believe today is an important day for two reasons. First, today ENDS a small part of our lives that we cherished. Second, it gives us a new beginning in which we are able to move a step forward in life. I stand before you trying to say something that would be meaningful and still keep your interest. When I entered Brent School about 6 years ago, I was just a little girl from a normal Korean family who could not speak English at all. I never expected to one day be standing up in front of all of you giving a speech. So I will just give you a little advice that I hope you can find something in my words to help you along your way in the future.
As many of you might think, being one of those at the top of your class is of course a result of getting all your work done in time, getting good GPA, or making the right decisions which could sometimes even require you to say no. But here is where I would really like to make my point. To be successful in what you do is far simpler when ‘you’ set up a goal to become what you want to be.
Throughout my life, I’ve learned to work toward goals set by myself which have encouraged me to succeed in both academics and sports. For instance, my dream was and still is to go to one of the top three universities back in Korea. To get there, I needed to get a Toefl score of above 110 out of 120, and high GPAs throughout the 4 years of high school. The goals I set establish an endpoint. Do not always expect your goals to be reached easily. Instead, have short-term goals to help you continually work at reaching them. A series of short-term goals may lead you up to the final accomplishment that you wished for. I first worked to get a GPA point of 3.0, then worked to get 3.5, then Bishop Brent. These short-term goals helped me get to the place where I needed to be in order to achieve my goal. I believe that without goals, there is nothing to reach for because there is nothing to keep you going.
For those of you who have done CAS, you may understand that the first thing you always do before starting any kind of project is to set up a goal – what you want to achieve through the project. For those of you who don’t know what CAS is, it’s a part of the IB program where students are required to do some community service projects like the POCCH outreach program which I just completed. I set goals to work with the orphanage children who I have never seen before. Through the goals I set up, I was able to provide positive help to these children, do a nice community service project, and satisfy my CAS requirements. By setting up these goals, I set a path for how to succeed. There were difficulties, but I continued to work and work until I met my goal.
Set high goals for yourself and strive to achieve those goals, as famous American Scholar once said “If you can imagine it, you can achieve it; if you can dream it, you can become it.” There will be dark times with hardships and challenges. But always remember that the night is the darkest before the dawn. Set goals for yourself, believe in yourself, and work to achieve for yourself.
Thank you all for coming here today and listening to my words. Rather than a final farewell, I would like to wish the best of luck to all of you, and especially to the graduating class of 2012. Thank you again and always remember to believe in yourselves. Have a great summer and safe travels!”

salutatorian addressy Mr Sam on May 31, 2012
“Good morning and welcome. I am honored and pleased to have the privilege of speaking to all of you today. Being up here in front of the whole school body makes those nights of endless homework and sleep deprivation seem worth it.
For most of the students here, I believe today is an important day for two reasons. First, today ENDS a small part of our lives that we cherished. Second, it gives us a new beginning in which we are able to move a step forward in life. I stand before you trying to say something that would be meaningful and still keep your interest. When I entered Brent School about 6 years ago, I was just a little girl from a normal Korean family who could not speak English at all. I never expected to one day be standing up in front of all of you giving a speech. So I will just give you a little advice that I hope you can find something in my words to help you along your way in the future.
As many of you might think, being one of those at the top of your class is of course a result of getting all your work done in time, getting good GPA, or making the right decisions which could sometimes even require you to say no. But here is where I would really like to make my point. To be successful in what you do is far simpler when ‘you’ set up a goal to become what you want to be.
Throughout my life, I’ve learned to work toward goals set by myself which have encouraged me to succeed in both academics and sports. For instance, my dream was and still is to go to one of the top three universities back in Korea. To get there, I needed to get a Toefl score of above 110 out of 120, and high GPAs throughout the 4 years of high school. The goals I set establish an endpoint. Do not always expect your goals to be reached easily. Instead, have short-term goals to help you continually work at reaching them. A series of short-term goals may lead you up to the final accomplishment that you wished for. I first worked to get a GPA point of 3.0, then worked to get 3.5, then Bishop Brent. These short-term goals helped me get to the place where I needed to be in order to achieve my goal. I believe that without goals, there is nothing to reach for because there is nothing to keep you going.
For those of you who have done CAS, you may understand that the first thing you always do before starting any kind of project is to set up a goal – what you want to achieve through the project. For those of you who don’t know what CAS is, it’s a part of the IB program where students are required to do some community service projects like the POCCH outreach program which I just completed. I set goals to work with the orphanage children who I have never seen before. Through the goals I set up, I was able to provide positive help to these children, do a nice community service project, and satisfy my CAS requirements. By setting up these goals, I set a path for how to succeed. There were difficulties, but I continued to work and work until I met my goal.
Set high goals for yourself and strive to achieve those goals, as famous American Scholar once said “If you can imagine it, you can achieve it; if you can dream it, you can become it.” There will be dark times with hardships and challenges. But always remember that the night is the darkest before the dawn. Set goals for yourself, believe in yourself, and work to achieve for yourself.
Thank you all for coming here today and listening to my words. Rather than a final farewell, I would like to wish the best of luck to all of you, and especially to the graduating class of 2012. Thank you again and always remember to believe in yourselves. Have a great summer and safe travels!”